NHL Season Preview: Washington Capitals

My Caps preview is now up over at FanHouse (and I shared a few thoughts with FrankD at Pensburgh as well). If you've been reading this blog for any significant period of time, nothing I've written in those other places will surprise you, but that doesn't mean you're off the hook... go read 'em.

As for last year's FanHouse preview, let's look at one each of my hits and misses:

Hit:

Who's On The Hook: The media may say Ovechkin, the fans may say McPhee and Kolzig would no doubt say Kolzig, but I think it's Hanlon. Leonsis has opened his checkbook, McPhee has written some checks and the talent he has drafted has matured, so the pieces are there for Hanlon to make it all work. A powerplay that finished in the bottom-third of the League last year could be blamed on a lack of personnel, but no longer. A team that struggled to hold leads and win games could be explained away by inexperience, but that reasoning is quickly losing its validity as skaters barely old enough to drink legally in the States have multiple NHL seasons under their belts. It's up to Hanlon to show that he can not only shepherd a young team through tough teams, but coach a talented squad to success.

Nailed it.

Bonus hit:

The Southeast Division probably has the most top-to-bottom parity (read: is the most mediocre) in hockey, and honestly, you could make a reasonable argument for any of the five teams as division winners (or losers). So here's the argument for the Caps: only Carolina has a better top-nine forwards, only Florida has a better number one goalie and only a healthy Tampa has a better top-four defensemen. And here's the kicker -- the Caps have tons of cap room, an owner willing to spend and prospects to burn should they need a piece or two at some point.

You can look at all of the smaller reasons the Caps and their fans are smiling this Fall, but they'll all add up to one big reason in the Spring -- a Southeast Division Championship.

Nailed it, Part Deux.

Miss:

The third line should provide the Caps with both shut-down capability and a decent amount of offense, as left wing Matt Pettinger (a 20-goal scorer two years ago who never really seemed 100% healthy last year) and Chris Clark (a 30-goal scorer last year playing opposite Ovechkin on the top line, who is everything you could want in a captain) will flank the defensive-minded Boyd Gordon, who came into his own as a checker last year, as evidenced by his team-leading plus-10 rating. The trio provide the Caps with their best checking line since Steve Konowalchuk, Jeff Halpern and Ulf Dahlen did the job around the turn of this century.

I had high hopes for that trio. Oh well.

Bonus line combo miss:

Joining Ovechkin and Kozlov on the top line (at least to start the season) will be Tomas Fleischmann, a 23-year-old Czech who has little left to prove at the AHL level, but needs to show that he can stick in the NHL.

That's not my miss, of course, but considering that Hugs' Opening Night top line was Ovechkin-Kozlov-Fleischmann, it's amazing he made it to Thanksgiving.

So my previewing is done and I've said just about all I can say (though that won't stop me from saying more). If you've got any thoughts, concerns, predictions, etc. on the upcoming season, now would be the time to throw 'em in the comments for posterity.

On a sidenote, I can't believe there's another week-and-a-half before the season starts... drop the damn puck already!

NHL Season Preview: Carolina Hurricanes

Remember at the end of last season, when Carolina needed to win just two of their final four games (two of which were against the worst team in the League) to make the playoffs? And when they only needed to beat the lowly Florida Panthers, at home no less, to get in? Remember when you were with the Beatles and you were supposed to be dead, and there were all these clues, like you play some song backwards and it'd say, like "Paul is Dead" and everybody thought you were dead and, um, that was a hoax right? Wait, what?

Anyway, my 'Canes preview is up over at FanHouse, which means it's time to look back at my effort from last year.

Hit:

Where They'll Finish: Carolina could finish anywhere in the Southeast Division, and really just about anywhere in the Eastern Conference -- it all depends on how healthy they can stay and how well Cam Ward can play (no pressure, kid!). But even healthy, the defense is among the Conference's worst, and for that reason, while the 'Canes will win a number of high-scoring affairs, they won't win enough games overall to make the playoffs.

The Hurricanes were decimated by injuries last season, but still scored the fifth-most goals in the League. Ultimately, it was their defense (or lack thereof - they were 25th in the League in goals against) that secured them an early tee time last April.

Miss:

Andrew Ladd and should get his first [25-goal] season sooner rather than later.

Maybe this will be Ladd's year, as he only found the net 14 times in 2007-08.

So are you feelin' this year's 'Canes or has the injury to Justin Williams derailed their season before it even started? Is Cam Ward a legitimate number one NHL netminder? Is Eric Staal worth the big bucks he just got? Most importantly... are the 'Canes a threat to win the Southeast Division?

NHL Season Preview: Florida Panthers

I've always thought that the perspective in the Panthers logo was way off. I mean, how far away can those hind legs possibly be? Maybe she (right?) was just born with small feet.

Anyway, my Cats preview is up over at FanHouse, and here's a bit from last year's tour de force:

Hit:

Who's On The Hook: Jokinen. In a League in which more than half the teams make the playoffs each year, no one in the NHL has played more regular season games without a playoff appearance than the Panthers captain, whose streak currently stands at 641games. While the blame for the team's failure to make the postseason since the ridiculous-in-retrospect trade that brought Jokinen and Roberto Luongo to South Beach in exchange for Oleg Kvasha and Mark Parrish can't be heaped entirely upon the 28-year-old Finn, he's the guy wearing the "C," he'll be the team's all-time leading scorer by Halloween, and he has posted back-to-back career seasons that have been relatively meaningless, as the Cats finished in fourth place in the Division both years. Jokinen can't do it alone, of course, but it's time for him to start earning those big bucks the team shelled out to extend his contract back in March of 2006, and he can start doing that by leading the Panthers to the playoffs.

You can't spell "Jokinen" without "joke."

Miss:

Bouwmeester is now entering his fifth NHL season, and this is the year that his name should start to become a part of any and every Norris Trophy discussions for the next decade or so.

Meh. I'd still take him on my team any day (but seriously, he couldn't even get one fifth-place vote last year?).

So how 'bout dem Kitties? Can they challenge for a playoff spot or are they headed back to Lotteryville? Which crappy Panther will own the Caps this season and win this year's Jon Sim Award (can anyone dethrone reigning award winner Kamil Kreps)?

NHL Season Preview: Atlanta Thrashers

Working our way up last year's standings from horrible to crappy, we find ourselves today previewing the Atlanta Thrashers. Head over to FanHouse to see where I predict the Thrash to finish (hint: DFL), and here's a hit and a miss from my preview a year ago:

Hit:

[S]ince [Don Waddell] can fire head coach Bob Hartley and Hartley cannot fire Waddell, it's Hartley who will take the blame and be the first casualty should things start going awry in the ATL. Heartless, err, Hartley has seen his Thrashers improve in each of his first three full seasons with the club, but was outcoached in the playoffs and his handling of Lehtonen (playing him without rest for long stretches of the regular season and going back and forth between he and Johan Hedberg in the playoffs) could have a lasting impact on the youngster's psyche. Coaching is very much a "what have you done for me lately?" vocation, and should Atlanta get off to a slow start, don't be surprised if someone else is behind the bench come Christmas

Hartley was fired after six games (sidenote: enjoy Omsk, Bob, where Jaromir Jagr seems to have already donked off the head coach).

Miss:

Prediction: 2nd Southeast Division and into the playoffs by a feather.

Hey, you guys get what you pay for from me.

So what do you think - is there any chance Atlanta isn't lottery-bound? How many players on their entire roster would even make the current Caps' lineup?

My Boy, We're Pilgrims In An Unholy Land

The gentlemen at The Pensblog asked me to do a brief preview of the 2008-09 Caps for their fine site and I happily obliged. Head on over there to read what I threw together and don't be shy about making yourself heard in the comments (if and when they re-open posts for commenting, that is)... lord knows I'll probably need the back-up.

NHL Season Preview: Tampa Bay Lightning

Once again this year I'll be previewing each of the teams in the Southeast Division over at FanHouse. We're counting down from worst to first in each Conference based on last year's standings, which means the Lightning are up first.

I also thought it'd be fun (and moderately embarrassing) to look at a hit and a miss for each team from last year's preview, so...

Hit:

Who's On The Hook: It'd be easy to say Feaster (especially considering some of his more notable failures coupled with MacLean undoubtedly looking over his shoulder) or Tortorella (given the way the players seem to be tuning him out more and more each year), but I'm going to go with Richards. Whether or not his linemates are legitimate NHL scoring threats on their own, $7.8 million is "make everyone around you a legitimate NHL scoring threat" money. It's a cool million more than Lecavalier makes and two Michel Ouellets more than St. Louis makes. Richards needs to elevate the second line to a point where teams actually have to pay some attention to it, otherwise, the Bolts are toast.

Both Feaster and Richards, of course, are long gone in Tampa Basement.

Miss:

The penalty kill should be better and the netminding can't be worse, so I'm going to predict that Tortorella coaxes another playoff berth out of this squad -- and we're all left wondering just how the hell he did it.

Or they'll finish DFL in the entire League.

So what do you expect from this year's Lightning? Go on record with your predictions - the bolder the better - in the comments.

NHL Season Preview: Washington Capitals

Today brings us the last of our 30 team previews over at FanHouse, and it's my take on the 2007-08 Caps (it's set to publish at 10:00 this morning, but y'all can take a gander at it now as my personal V.I.P. readers).

It's lengthy and optimistic - go bold or go home, right? - so check it out when you've got some time and don't be afraid to represent, as the kids say, in the comments.

NHL.com Previews The Caps

In case you missed it during the whirlwind that was the opening weekend of training camp, on Friday NHL.com posted their in-depth preview of the Caps.

I haven't read all of NHL.com's previews to use as points of reference, but this one is pretty effusive in it's praise of and optimism for the squad from D.C., freely throwing around phrases like "the Capitals are ready to challenge for the Southeast Division championship," and "some people, including Ovechkin, think he's the most talented young player in the NHL[.]"

Sure, there's some spotty fact-checking in there (Boyd Gordon was not the Caps first pick in 2002 - he wasn't even their second pick), but it's a good read nonetheless.

NHL Season Preview: Florida Panthers

Never in my life did I think I would end up writing nearly 1,200 words on the Florida Panthers - much less in a single post - but, well, I did. If you never thought you could read 1,200 words on the Florida Panthers, head over to FanHouse and try to prove yourself wrong (warning: I may be developing a mancrush on Jay Bouwmeester).

NHL Season Preview: Atlanta Thrashers

As promised, here's the first of my Southeast Division Team Previews from over at FanHouse. Today's victim, err, subject is Atlanta, who finally made the playoffs for the first time last year. Will they make it back this season? I have my doubts.

Team-By-Team Season Previews

With less than a month before the first faceoff of the NHL season, numerous outlets are kicking their season previews into gear, and I wanted to note a couple of them. Each of the individual team previews from the following sources will be linked to in the "What We're Reading" sidebar, so make sure you're looking for 'em:

1. FanHouse - Eric kicks off our preview-a-day coverage today with his look at the Ducks. I'll be previewing each of the Southeast Division teams (natch), so look for my take on the Thrashers tomorrow.
2. E.J. Hradek's "Better or Worse" - I'm digging Hradek's approach (though just about everyone seems to be "better" so far).
3. Barry Melrose Rocks - A wildly entertaining site in general, his "2007-08 Preseason Foreplay" series is everything you'd want in a team preview: snark, pretty girls and even some analysis. Start with the Habs and catch up with the links at the bottom of that post.

Have any other preseason must-reads? Let us know in the comments.